Rest in Winter

 

Sometimes the most urgent thing you can possibly do is take a complete rest. 

~ Ashleigh Brilliant

My Wish for You!

Happiness is the settling of the soul into its most appropriate spot.
– Aristotle

Wishing you feeders full of birds,
Hearts filled with happiness
and Joy beyond measure.

The Christmas Lady

"At Christmas, all roads lead home." 
~ Marjorie Holmes  

Print Available - HERE 

The cardinals always come around during the Christmas Holidays!
This little lady was perched on a tree outside my window one Christmas Day.

Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone has a FABULOUS Holiday!
Stay warm and safe...and cherish your friends and family!

Christmas Bells

I HEARD heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Till ringing, singing on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime,
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Then from each black, accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And in despair I bowed my head;
"There is no peace on earth," I said;
"For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!"

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
"God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men."

~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Print Available - HERE 

 

Snowy Days

A December 2009 Snow storm 

When I awoke on that morning - the Bird Feeder Wreath  was full of snow.
 I shook the snow off and added some more bird treats.
This White breasted nuthatch was happy I did!

Blue Jay in the Snow

When snow falls, nature listens. 

 ~Antoinette van Kleeff

'Tis the Season

...to be Jolly!

Print Available - HERE 

 

Blue Jay

“The truest greatness lies in being kind, the truest wisdom in a happy mind.” 

 ― Ella Wheeler Wilcox

More of my Blue Jay Images - HERE 

White-throated Sparrow in the Snow

Life is not an exact science, it is an art. 
- Samuel Butler 

Goldfinch in the Snow

~ A golden ornament
on the snow covered tree
Nature decorates ~ 

Rainy Day Bird and a Gray Bow

  Cold and Rainy.
This Mourning Dove is all puffed up trying to keep warm.

This time - a gray "bow" for my wreath.
Sprinkle the seeds and the birds love to come and dig them out.

Visit my online card and gift shop.  
Great gifts for the Nature Lover :)

Go After Life!

Wake up with a smile and go after life....Live it, enjoy it
taste it, smell it, feel it."

~ Joe Knapp

Autumn Blue Jay

When you are reluctant to change, 
think of the beauty of Autumn. 

~ V.B. Brown

Two Kinds of Red

These little Red Squirrels have made a home in our backyard.
They put on quite the show for me...leaping from tree to tree.
More of my Squirrels - HERE 

And a bit brighter red! This cardinal was decorating the wreath
like a big Red bow :)
More of my Cardinals - HERE

Goldfinch in the Pines

A little goldfinch hiding in the pines.

"The best way to pay for a lovely moment 

is to enjoy it."

 – Richard Bach

More of my Goldfinch Images - HERE 

Happy Thanksgiving

 He who thanks but with the lips 

Thanks but in part; 

The full, the true Thanksgiving 

Comes from the heart. 

~ J.A. Shedd

Great Blue Heron in Flight

Dream large and make your dreams defy the laws of gravity. Soar high and show your inner strength

- Lee Pryke

Great Blue Heron 

Izaak Walton Park - Christiansburg, Virginia 

A Christmas Cardinal

“Imagine what our real neighborhoods would be like if each of us offered as a matter of course just one kind word to another person.” 

– Fred Rogers 

 Prints, Mugs and More - Available - HERE 

Dew Drops on Grass

I've always been quite taken in by the beauty of a water droplet.
I LOVE how they line up in little rows across the blade of grass.

A closer crop of the shot above. Do you see the reflection of
another blade of grass with water drops INSIDE the droplet?

Nature Amazes Daily!

My EXCITING News!

Dear Friends,

I got the most AMAZING news on Friday!
My daughter was accepted into Radford University.
She will begin her freshman year of college in August.
Not only did she get accepted...but she also got invited into the
Honors Academy...AND
she received an academic scholarship.
I can't tell you how proud I am of her :)
She is a smart and beautiful young lady.
But best of all - she is a kind young lady.
One of the kindest I know.

White-throated Sparrow

“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.” 

 ― Lao Tzu 

Print Available - HERE

Red-bellied Woodpecker - Taking Off

This Red-bellied Woodpecker took off while I was
photographing it.

Love those wings!

Look who came to dinner

All animals except man know that the principal business of life is to enjoy it. 

 ― Samuel Butler

Print Available - HERE 

American Robin - Blending In

Success is simply never giving in to failure - either in mind or body.
- Steve Backley

Prints, Cards, Mugs and More Available
HERE 

What a Big Mouth!

 What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?

-Vincent van Gogh

Cedar Waxwings are common visitors to my backyard trees. 
I feel very blessed to be able to enjoy their beauty :) 

Now Introducing.....

My "shop" at Cafe Press.
Kreations by Kerri at
www.cafepress.com/kerrif

I have toyed with the idea for a long time and finally did it!
Offering note cards and journals for now - soon to be adding
mugs, calendars and many other items.

Hope you can stop by my shop for a visit!

Cedar Waxwing - Going For The Berry

Daring enthusiasm 

 And abiding cheerfulness 

Can accomplish everything on earth 

Without fail.

~ Sri Chinmoy

Downy Woodpecker

Mrs. Downy Woodpecker posing for me.

"When I was young, I admired clever people. 

Now that I am old, I admire kind people." 

~ Abraham Joshua Heschel

Dear Friends.....

Another family emergency this week.
My father had to have emergency surgery to insert a pacemaker.
He was walking around and DRIVING with a heart rate of 30. NOT a good thing.
While in surgery it dropped as low as 26. We are thankful that the surgery
was a success and that he is doing well.
I have been staying with my parents for the last few days...just home
today long enough to do some laundry and get my family ready for next week.
I will be heading back over today and stay with my parent's until Friday when my
brother and sister will be continuing the care.
Once I get back I'll catch up with all of your blogs.

Remember to: Cherish every sunrise, cherish every sunset, and cherish
every moment in between.

Autumn Goldfinch

To be glad of life, because it gives you the chance to love and to work and to play and to look up at the stars;
to be satisfied with your possessions, but not contented with yourself
until you have made the best of them;
to despise nothing in the world except falsehood and meanness,
and to fear nothing except cowardice;
to be governed by your admirations rather than by your disgusts;
to covet nothing that is your neighbor's except
his kindness of heart and gentleness of manners;
to think seldom of your enemies, often of your friends,
and every day of Christ;
and to spend as much time as you can, with body and with spirit,
in God's out-of-doors --
these are the little guideposts on the footpath to peace.
~Henry Van Dyke 

A Place To Rest

Everything needs a break.

- Toba Beta

A Berry Good Time

"Yummy!"

Carolina Wren Among the Pines

Carolina Wren - Blending In.
Trees are your best antiques. 

~ Alexander Smith

Robin Among the Berries

When I first open my eyes upon the morning meadows and
look out upon the beautiful world, I thank God I am alive.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Wishing you a Wonderful Day! 

Red-bellied Woodpecker Hanging on to a Berry

As you sit on the hillside, or lie prone under the trees of the forest, or sprawl wet-legged by a mountain stream, the great door, that does not look like a door, opens. 

~ Stephen Graham, The Gentle Art of Tramping

Mourning Cloak Butterfly

 

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

While out for a walk I saw this little guy and he
brightened my day. As you can see I was in a shady area so this shot
is not so bright.

But he is in the sun in this shot.
I was not sure what he was, but my twitter friends ID'd him
as a Ruby-crowned Kinglet.
The males have a little tuft of red on their head that shows whey they
are excited. Too bad I didn't get to see that!

More info on this little bird is found on Wikipedia - HERE 

A Smiling Tree

It only takes a split second to smile and forget, yet to someone that needed it, it can last a lifetime. 
We should all smile more often.
 ― Steve Maraboli

Do you need a smile today?  Can you see the smiling face on the tree?  Ok - well maybe he's not smiling but he sure put a smile on my face!

A Female Friend

“We'll be Friends Forever, won't we, Pooh?' asked Piglet. Even longer,' Pooh answered.” 
 ― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh 

 A Female Cardinal hides among the pine cones 
in my front yard.

Mocker in the Leaves

One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 

I sat and listened while this mockingbird made beautiful music in my yard.    What a wonderful sound!

Digital Watercolor Version - HERE 

Monarch Butterfly

"Kind words can be short and easy to speak but their echoes are truly endless." 

~ Mother Teresa

Hopper

 Everything has beauty, 
but not everyone sees it. 
- Confucius

Observing Nature - A Collage

To acquire knowledge, one must study; but to acquire wisdom, one must observe.

 ― Marilyn Vos Savant

Picked With A Curious Spirit

 Each situation is a blossom to be picked with a curious spirit.
~ Donna Quesada

Butterfly Field

 Contentment is natural wealth, 

luxury is artificial poverty.
~ Socrates